


The blonde in the window

by sadiequinn86



Series: It's just a little Bughead crush [1]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Friendship, Happy Ending, High School, Mutual Pining, Secret Crush, bughead - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-23
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-25 10:40:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17119820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sadiequinn86/pseuds/sadiequinn86
Summary: High school senior Jughead Jones has a secret - he's completely in love with his best friend Betty Cooper. When their mutual bestie Archie Andrews catches Jughead staring longingly at the Coopers, Jughead worries that someone has finally discovered the truth. Except, of course, until Archie mistakenly believes it's Polly who Jughead loves. Suddenly Betty won't even make eye contact with him in the hallways at school, but he can't quite figure out what he's done wrong.High school senior Betty Cooper has a secret - she's completely in love with her best friend Archie Andrews. Until Archie comes to her with the news that their mutual bestie Jughead Jones has a crush on her older sister Polly. Suddenly she can't breathe and she feels like her entire world is ending. Could it be that she's been lusting after the wrong best friend the entire time?





	1. Jughead Jones - A week through to Friday

**Author's Note:**

> Yes I know I have a chapter of The Gathering of Moss well overdue...
> 
> It's mostly written I swear! But the show has been diverging onto my key plot really uncomfortably over the past few weeks (a plot I distinctly outlined in February of this year way before anything season 3 related was close to happening) and I'm just hanging out for their episodes to take on some new crazy arc before I start posting again.
> 
> In the meantime, I've written this mostly fluffy AU piece to see me through the midseason break. There's some brief mentions of Betty having a thing for Archie in this fic but it's 100% Bughead and 0% Barchie (just to be clear!)

It starts with a misunderstanding.

No, that's not entirely true. It starts with a high school football game and a usual 'family dinner' at Pops.

It's what they do every Friday night. It's what they've done since they were old enough to be allowed to ride their bikes to Pops on their own.

Now they drive their cars to Pops (well Jughead still rides a bike, but it's a different kind of bike now - one with a rumbling motor that comes with a slick leather jacket).

They call it family dinner because they consider themselves a little family - bonded by the sands of time, childhood and shared secrets rather than by blood. It doesn't matter that one is a Jones, one is a Cooper and one is an Andrews.

It doesn't matter that as they've grown they've all become very different people - Jughead with his Southside Serpents and a switch blade concealed in his black combat boots, Betty with her perfect GPA and her love of investigative journalism, and Archie with his passion for music even in spite of the fact he's now also the captain of the football team.

Senior year is messy and stressful, but now more than ever they see the importance of making time each Friday night to debrief on their weeks and break bread together. It happens later in the evenings now, because Archie has his game to attend first. But that's okay, because they're all eighteen so their curfews have been extended and they revel in the freedom of it.

Jughead usually arrives first, and this night is no different. It seems somehow illogical for the only Southsider in their trio (who logistically has the furthest to travel) to always be the first through the diner door, but that's only until Betty's infatuation with Archie Andrews is taken into consideration.

It's been ever-present in their lives since they were maybe ten or eleven years old. From the first moment little Betty discovered boys were more than just for playing backyard games alongside, she just knew Archie was the one for her. Everybody in Riverdale knows it. Everybody, that is, except for Archie Andrews (though Jughead has long since suspected that Archie _does_ in fact also know it and uses Betty's crush to his advantage).

So Jughead arrives first and slips into his usual seat in their usual booth. He waves cordially at Pop Tate and waits for the crowd from the Bulldogs game that will inevitably bring with it Riverdale's star player Archie and number one fangirl Betty. She rarely if ever misses a chance to watch that boy throw a ball and run up and down a field in a stupid outfit.

The parking lot fills with joyful teens (clearly another victory for the Bulldogs) and moments later Archie and Betty burst through the door giggling and merry. Betty slides into her usual seat (across from Jughead, closest to the window) and Archie falls into his normal place (next to Betty, closest to the kitchen).

"Juggie you should have been there!" Betty gushes, completely ignoring the fact Jughead specifically makes a point of not attending sporting events of any description - even Archie's. "Our guy here was amazing! Archie single-handedly won the game."

The tips of Archie's ears burn red to match his hair but he laps up the praise and attention. He flings an arm casually over the back of the booth and accidentally on purpose lets his fingertips skim Betty's shoulder. Betty immediately leans back into his touch and then smiles blissfully.

"You're very sweet Betty, but it was a team effort." Archie says, feigning modesty.

Jughead watches the entire exchange through narrowed eyes. It's almost as if Archie is throwing a bread crumb of affection in Betty's direction in exchange for her entirely unnecessary compliments. In a way it's a little pathetic and Betty deserves better, but he knows Archie isn't maliciously trying to string along their mutual best friend so he lets the moment pass by without comment.

The rest of the evening is nothing but business as usual. They order their usual food, Jughead eats his first and then finishes Betty's (as usual), and then they all head back to Elm Street together.

The boys decide to play video games, but Betty's sister is home from the ridiculous hippy commune that she has elected to move to in lieu of going to college and Betty wants to spend some quality time with her. So once they reach the house with the red front door, Betty bids them good night (a hug for them both, though her arms linger slightly longer around Archie's shoulders) and disappears.

After greeting Fred and raiding the Andrews' fridge (because Jughead is never not hungry) they head up to Archie's bedroom with Vegas in tow.

Archie decides he wants to play Red Dead Redemption. Jughead thinks this is a stupid idea because Red Dead Redemption is a one player game and it means they have to take turns with the controller, but as usual he says nothing and let's his oldest friend have his way.

Jughead starts to lose interest when Archie is forty minutes deep into some mundane quest to collect animal hides. He can't seem to prevent his eyes from glancing out the open window to the house opposite. When he notices Betty is sitting on her bed in her room, his stomach gets tickly and does a weird little flip flop.

Because of course it does.

Because all the whilst Betty has been pining over Archie, Jughead has been pining over her. But he's ever so much better at maintaining a poker face than she is, so literally nobody in Riverdale knows about it.

Betty is laughing and talking animatedly as she gestures wildly with her hands and it makes Jughead's heart happy to see her so happy. Every so often he also catches a glimpse of Polly, who is equally as engrossed in the conversation. But he can hardly take his eyes off Betty. She is radiant and clearly in her element now that her beloved sister is visiting the 'Dales.

After a few minutes, Betty starts pulling on her ears and Jughead is astute enough to recognize that she is now telling her sister about a pair of earrings. She suddenly jumps up from her bed and leaves the frame of the window (probably to scrounge in her dresser drawers for the earrings) and Polly immediately takes her place amongst the soft cushions and pink comforter on Betty's mattress.

Jughead is so wrapped up in watching Betty's private life play out across the way that he doesn't notice when the television goes silent.

"Oh my god Jug what's this about?" comes Archie's amused yet incredulous voice. "Why are you making heart eyes in the direction of Betty's bedroom?"

Jughead gasps and physically jumps up from the floor in his shock at finally being caught out. "I wasn't. I'm not. I mean..."

_Oh no_ , Jughead thinks. Archie knows about his love for Betty.

Archie is laughing as he turns to glance out the window now, and his eyes go wide with glee and understanding when he immediately locks onto Polly draped across Betty's bed.

"Ahhh." he says excitedly, as if suddenly realizing something salacious for the first time. "Polly Cooper, hey? Never knew you had a thing for blondes."

_Ohhhhh no_ , Jughead thinks. Stupid Archie has put the puzzle pieces together incorrectly.

"I don't." Jughead splutters, though it's a lie of course because Betty is just as blonde if not blonder than Polly.

"Does Betty know you have a thing for her sister?" Archie asks, loving this way too much.

"I don't." Jughead says again, very much wishing the ground could swallow him up.

"An older girl too. Trying to get a stamp on your cougar card?" Archie continues to tease.

Jughead wants to scoff and tell Archie that first of all a twenty year old girl is _not_ a cougar and second of all just the notion of a 'cougar card' is grossly chauvinistic and frankly downright vile.

But instead he just swallows heavily over a lump that has somehow appeared in his throat and mutely shakes his head.

Polly must feel the intensity of eyes on her then, because she looks over at the window. She sees the boys staring back at her and waves excitedly. Archie grins widely and waves back, but Jughead can only manage the slightest upturn of his lips.

"I wonder how long Pol is back at home for." Archie muses, turning away from the window to appraise his best friend. "There's a school dance coming up. Maybe you could  -"

Jughead can see the little cogs spinning in Archie's jock brain. He also sees the end of that sentence coming possibly even before Archie does and moves to cut him off at the pass.

"No." he says resolutely. "I'm not inviting Polly Cooper to the school dance. I'm not even going to the school dance at all, let alone inviting Polly."

"Betty could help - " Archie begins again, but once more Jughead stops him in his tracks.

"Do _not_ tell Betty about this, Archie." he says, sounding perhaps a little more desperate than he intended.

Jughead suddenly feels like he's spiralling. Questions are swirling in his head so fast he can hardly grasp the meaning of them...

How could Archie possibly think he has a thing for Polly Cooper? What if Betty finds out? Why are they even having this conversation? Ugh. Was it always this hot in Archie's bedroom?

This is the worst thing that has happened to him since the time drunken FP accidentally left the faucet turned on in the bathroom and flooded the entire trailer, and _that_ was months ago.

"Jug, she isn't going to care." Archie admonishes him lightly. "I think Betty will be excited that you finally have a crush on someone."

"I said no." Jughead is more firm this time, and angrier.

Archie's eyes register a little shock, and he straight away perceives that he has taken the light-hearted joking too far.

"Okay dude whatever you say." he nods. "I won't tell Betty. You have my word."

That evening when Jughead returns home, he is met by an anxious Fangs at the trailer park. There's drama with the Serpents (just for something different - cue the sarcasm) and Jughead learns that some utter asswipe has tagged the exterior of the Whyte Wyrm with bright blue spray paint and included an ominous threat that next time their clubhouse will be burned to the ground rather than merely vandalized.

The Serpents aren't just a gang, they're a lifestyle choice. A choice Jughead never considered making for himself, until his father was briefly jailed back when they were all in sophomore year of school.

At that juncture,  joining the gang had mostly been for Jughead's protection because FP was away. But over time, he has learned how to balance his commitment to the Serpents whilst also maintaining his regular everyday life at Riverdale High. It means constant adjustment and finding a way to balance his friendships with Betty and Archie against those with his new friends in the gang.

For now, Friday nights are for Betty and Archie, but weekends are for the Serpents.

Jughead spends all of Saturday and most of Sunday with Sweet Pea, Toni and Fangs tracking down the perpetrators of the paint incident. When it turns out to be a bunch of kids from Southside High carrying out a prank that blossomed from a petty game of truth or dare, the cavalry is called off and everyone is just mostly relieved.

When Jughead arrives back at the trailer on Sunday night it's already dark enough outside for the street lamps to be lit. He pulls out his phone and sends a quick text message to Betty.

**Jughead** : _Hey Betts. 6am pick up tomorrow morning?_

Jughead always gives Betty a ride to school on Monday mornings. There's no particular need for it as she lives close enough to Riverdale High that she can walk. In fact she does walk on Tuesday through Friday, with Archie by her side.

But on Monday mornings the Blue and Gold have their weekly editorial briefings to plan the upcoming article. It means an early start and Betty is forced to walk alone, which is something Jughead will never abide. Riverdale is a small town, and not particularly high on crime, but he still hates the idea of Betty vulnerable and isolated. So he goes out of his way to collect her and take her to school. It's something they've been doing ever since Jughead started riding the bike and it's just become a normal part of their routine.

At a base level, it also infinitely thrills them both that snotty Alice Cooper has to watch her daughter head off to class every Monday morning on the back of a motorcycle.

Jughead glances at his phone and notices that Betty has read his message, but not responded. It's completely unlike her not to come back with a chirpy reply moments after he has texted, so he sends her a quick follow up.

**Jughead:** _Everything okay Betts?_

Once again, she leaves him on read but doesn't answer. It's just plain weird and a touch of dread starts manifesting in the pit of his stomach. He can't think of anything he's done to Betty that would upset her.

On the contrary he goes out of his way to ensure he never does anything to offend her. She's way too important to him. She's...well, she's Betty.

**Jughead:** _Betts?_

Several minutes later, a response finally comes through.

**Betty:** _Polly is giving me a ride tomorrow._

That's it. No explanation, no conversation. Not even a 'thanks but no thanks.' Just succinct and to the point. A brush-off.

Jughead rationalizes that probably something has happened at home. There's likely been some nonsensical Cooper family drama that the girls are dealing with and he is worrying for nothing. But it's unusual for Betty not to divulge those details to him (because he's always been way better at using his listening ears and providing solid advice than loveable but vapid Archie).

It then occurs to Jughead just how unusual it is that there has been no communication between the two of them for the entirety of the weekend. Normally there's late night phone calls, deep text conversations about movies or books, or when they're busy even just simple "hey how's it going?" messages to keep morale high.

By the time Jughead arrives at the Blue and Gold office the following morning for their 6.30am team meeting, he is more than just worried. He is fully freaking out.

Betty is perched atop a desk, wedged carefully between Ethel Muggs (who writes the advice column) and Reggie Mantle (who is forced to write for the paper to gain extra credit in order to graduate with the rest of their class).

This in itself isn't strange, except for the fact that Betty always sits next to _him_ at their weekly meetings.

Throughout the meeting, she talks at him, rather than to him and he struggles to hold eye contact with her. Jughead's hands are clammy from nervousness and he really wants to ask her what's going on, but she deliberately drags proceedings out until the first bell sounds. The meeting finally concludes and before he can pull her aside, she scurries off to class - arm looped through Ethel's in a telling show of sisterly solidarity.

Something is very, very wrong.

He isn't able to pay attention in class all morning, especially in calculus where he is forced to stare at the left side of Betty's face the entire time (because she refuses to turn and look at him - even when he tosses scrunched up wads of paper into her lap) and AP Government when she chooses a seat next to the creepy little scout master Dilton Doiley instead of near him.

By the time lunch rolls around, he is more determined than ever to talk to her. Even if it means physically dragging her into a janitors closet to demand answers.

But she bypasses their usual table and makes a beeline straight for the gaggle of Vixens in the far corner of the cafeteria. To Jughead's shock, Betty slides seamlessly into a seat between Cheryl Blossom and Veronica Lodge. Veronica smiles warmly at her and places a hand protectively on Betty's knee.

Betty may come across as innocent and naïve, but Jughead knows she is neither. And he also knows that _she_ knows the Vixens table is not a place that he will follow her. Especially not when she is clearly there as a guest of the terrifying Miss Lodge.

The two girls had been close friends for a short time back in sophomore year, when the dark haired diva first moved to sleepy Riverdale from the bright lights of New York City. But then it all went terribly wrong one night at a notorious Blossom house party. All Jughead knew was what Betty had divulged between sobs, when she'd turned up at Pops shivering and alone. It was something to do with Archie, Veronica, seven minutes in heaven and the ultimate betrayal of the girl code.

After that, Betty and Veronica were relegated to acquaintances at best. Which makes the fact the pair of them are now eating lunch together all the more bitter for him to swallow.

Furious and frustrated as hell at having his friendship status demoted to less that Veronica, Jughead huffs off his shoulder bag and flops down in his usual seat across from Archie.

"Yo dude." Archie says, leaning forward across the tabletop. "What have you done to Betty? I've never seen her so worked up."

"I have no idea!" Jughead blurts dramatically. "I was really hoping you'd be able to tell me."

"Nah." Archie replies with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I asked her after gym class but she just told me everything was fine."

Jughead sighs and shakes his head in resignation. "I've been trying to talk to her all day but she's avoiding me like the plague."

"Well if I was you I'd just steer clear of her." Archie advises seriously. "You know Betty - she's incapable of holding a grudge. Just give her some space for a day or two and I'm sure she'll cool off."

Archie Andrews is rarely right about things. Especially not things concerning Betty Cooper. But on this occasion, Jughead decides his friend has the smartest idea.

Whilst he can't stand the idea of Betty upset and the concept of not knowing what he's done wrong is already beginning to eat away at his soul, he knows that he needs to respect her very clear warning that she wants him to leave her alone.

On Monday afternoons, Betty and Jughead normally commence work on their new articles for the school paper, but when the final bell rings Jughead walks right past the Blue and Gold office and finds his bike out in the parking lot.

He knows most of the young Serpents head to the Wyrm after Southside High lets out, and nobody so much as bats an eyelid when he wanders into the bar to join them.

He spends the evening playing pool with Sweet Pea and Joaquin, intermittently checking his phone just in case Betty contacts him.

She doesn't.

By the time Tuesday rolls around he is cranky and feels uncomfortable in his own skin. This is officially the longest he has gone without talking to Betty Cooper since the summer of freshman year when Fred Andrews took Jughead and Archie on a four day fishing trip in the wilderness of upstate New York and they had no cell phone reception.

It's a sad truth that Jughead doesn't quite know how to function without Betty in his life. Even before he loved her in a romantic sense, he loved her like a member of his family.

She is his sounding board, his touch stone, the voice of reason inside his head. And his world is slightly dimmed without her in it.

When he catches sight of her in the hallway before homeroom his instinctive reaction is to rush over to her and open up an enthusiastic dialogue about the latest episode of their favorite true crime podcast. But before he can take two steps towards her, she throws him the Cooper perfected version of the stink eye and it halts the motion of his boots on the squeaky linoleum.

At lunch time, Betty is animatedly chatting with Veronica across the cafeteria, but Jughead can tell that she isn't in a great place mentally. He can see the dark circles under her eyes, despite her seemingly abundant energy. It's almost as if she didn't sleep at all the night before then just over-compensated with a gallon of strong coffee. She's jumpy and her eyes struggle to stay focused.

"Betty seems to be handling this whole thing so much better than you, Jug." Archie observes, stabbing his fork into his bowl of fruit salad. "You look like shit, man."

Jughead opens his mouth to disagree, but Archie is never overly astute when it comes to Betty. Considering they've all been the best of friends since early childhood, Archie only ever sees the surface layers that Betty wants the world to see. In some ways, it's kind of sad. But he knows that Archie truly loves and appreciates his friends, even if he is a little superficial.

"Thanks Arch." Jughead replies instead, rolling his eyes. "I just love it when you sugar-coat things."

"Sorry." Archie winces. "Just wish we knew what has Betty so pissed at you. Maybe you could ask Polly?"

Jughead, who has been staring keenly at Betty, takes a moment to register Archie's exact words and then slowly drags his gaze from the blonde in the corner to rest squarely on his friend across the table.

"Are you going to start in on this garbage again?" Jughead asks, the warning tone evident in his voice.

Archie says nothing, but offers a knowing smirk and a sly wink. The silence stretches on long enough that he then adds in a suggestive waggle of the eyebrows.

Jughead sighs and reaches up to pinch the bridge of his nose, shaking his head at Archie's unspoken yet grotesque insinuation.

"Do you have amnesia?" he practically hisses. "I told you on Friday night that I don't have a thing for Polly."

"Whatever you say, dude." Archie chuckles. "I know what I saw."

"Oh no, you caught me. The rumors are all true." Jughead deadpans sarcastically. "Polly is my dream girl and my soul mate. I'll stop at nothing until I make her my little wife."

Archie commences what is no doubt a much less witty retort, but Jughead immediately loses attention as he notices an upset looking Betty rush out of the cafeteria.

Acting on instinct once again, Jughead rises to his feet and makes to run after her. But he feels a small yet heavy hand on his shoulder, pushing him back down into his chair. It's such an unwelcome distraction that he doesn't immediately notice it's Veronica manhandling him.

"I'll go." she says disdainfully. "You've already caused enough damage, Mr Jones. Don't you think?"

Truthfully Jughead doesn't know what to think. He is completely and utterly in the dark. 

Much to Jughead's horror, Wednesday and Thursday pass by in much the same ilk as Tuesday. Betty coldly ignores him, all the while looking more and more exhausted. With Jughead, in turn, becoming more and more forlorn. 

He misses Betty. He just plain misses her.

Not just her beautiful face, the sparkling green of her eyes, or the fruity scent of her shampoo. But her mind, her wit, her intellect.

He misses talking to her, especially the mundane things that nobody else cares about. The questionable contents of the school meatloaf, the birds eggs in the maple tree near his trailer that have now hatched four squawking little babies, the correlation between the shade of Cheryl Blossom's lipstick and her current mental state. All of these are fleeting thoughts that he used to share with Betty, but he now shares with no one.

He is surrounded by people yet he is lonely without her. Lonely - plain and simple.

He spends his afternoons with the Serpents now, and he feels his connection with the Northside slipping by the day as he gets drawn into their complex web of gang related drama.

It's Friday afternoon after the last bell has sounded when things finally reach a head.

Betty is standing at her locker, extracting the books she will need for study over the weekend and neatly slotting them into her blue floral backpack. The hallways are relatively empty, and though he isn't specifically searching for her he notices her immediately.

The week has clearly been tough on both of them. Her face is sans makeup with nothing to mask the dark circles under her eyes now and her hair has been forced into a messy bun at the base of her neck instead of her usual prim ponytail.

She gently but firmly forces her locker door shut and then turns to head in his direction (the opposite direction of the exit, so she's probably on her way to the Blue and Gold office). She spots him, her eyes go wide, her breath hitches in her throat and she quickly turns to run away. But not before he watches her fingers curl inwards as her hands form fists and his blood runs cold.

Jughead is the only person on the planet, perhaps other than Polly, who knows about Betty's unhealthy coping mechanism for stress. It's one of the only secrets they actively decided to keep from their third amigo, because Betty had been worried that Archie would view her as less than perfect if he ever found out the truth. At the time Jughead thought that fact alone was pretty friggen indicative that Archie and Betty really _weren't_ that well suited for each other romantically, but of course he went along with her plan so as not to upset her.

But on this occasion, not upsetting her is the last thing on his mind. He uses the extra length in his legs to his advantage as he takes long strides to cut the distance between them, then reaches out and loops his fingers around her bicep, spinning her abruptly to face him.

"Stop it." he snaps, grabbing at her hands with his own and prying them open. "I don't ever want to see you do this shit because of me. You hear me, Betty?"

Betty has tears in her eyes and she has the good grace to look ashamed, but there's a fire in her still and she shoves him roughly away from her. "Don't touch me."

"Look, I still don't know exactly what it is that I've done to make you hate me." he says heatedly. "But nothing is worth hurting yourself over, okay? So just knock it off. I care about you too much."

He doesn't mean for those last words to slip out of his mouth. But the gaffe just rolls so easily off his tongue and there's nothing he can say to save face. He isn't sure how he expects Betty to act following his little revelation, but anger certainly isn't near the top of his list.

"Care?" she spits indignantly. "You're a liar."

By this point Jughead is so frustrated that he rips the beanie from the crown of his head and uses his free hand to rake through his unruly hair. He isn't sure if he wants to shake some sense into her, storm out of the building or push her up against the closest locker and kiss her senseless.

"For crying out loud Betty can you please just tell me what it is that I've done to make you so mad?" he demands.

"I..." she starts, both angry and frazzled. "I just thought you'd pick me."

Then without another word she spins on her heel and rushes from the school, leaving him alone and dumbfounded in the hallway.

 


	2. Betty Cooper - A week through to Friday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go with chapter two! This is a much needed glimpse into Betty's mind and I'm taking our gal all the way back to the moment Jughead starts watching her through the window in chapter one. I think there's probably more angst than fluff in this chapter (mainly because Betty doesn't like to make things easy for herself) but this is probably about as light as a fic written by me is ever going to get haha. Hope you enjoy!

Friday nights are always Betty's favorite time of the week, but they're even better when her sister is at home. Dinner with the boys and then some much needed one-on-one time with Polly? Pretty much her idea of heaven. 

Betty let's out a happy squeal and turns away from her dresser, silver hoop earrings clutched triumphantly in her hand.

"Here Pol," she smiles. "These are the ones I was talking about. They look silly on me but they'll look great on you."

Polly is grinning, but her attention is elsewhere and the palm of her hand is raised in a wave. Betty follows her sister's gaze out the window and across the fence to where the boys are visible in Archie's bedroom. Archie looks super pleased about something, but Jughead seems uneasy.

Betty's stomach immediately sinks at the idea that Jughead isn't okay. She reaches into her backpack in search of her phone - she really should message him and ask if he's okay.

But before she can, she's distracted by her sister's scandalous words.

"My my." Polly smirks, turning back to Betty with a wink. "That boy is a tall drink of water these days. Talk about yum. What's it like being best friends with Riverdale's resident hottie?"

Betty's face flushes pink and she rolls her eyes. "Stop it, Pol. Archie would die of embarrassment if he knew you were talking about him so crudely."

Polly laughs loudly and flips her long blonde hair over her shoulder. "Whoever said I was talking about Archie?"

Betty frowns and turns back to the window again. It's like her grown-up eighteen year old eyes are noticing for the first time that there are actually two boys in that room across the way.

They both have their backs to the glass now, but this time she deliberately focuses in on Jughead. She can see the thick dark hair on his head (at least what's visible with his beloved beanie firmly in place), the curve of his broad shoulders and even the softness of his slender hands.

Betty realizes that there's a certain subtle suaveness to Jughead that Archie is incapable of achieving. It's a quiet handsomeness, but it's handsomeness nonetheless. She wonders if this is what Polly is talking about. 

Seconds later, her eyes widen in shock as she registers the fact she has just checked out Jughead and she has no idea what's wrong with her.

Seriously. For shame. 

Jughead is a friend. A best friend. Probably the _best_ of her best friends (because secretly she has a lot more in common with him than Archie).

But her heart belongs to another. It does. She _knows_ it does. It says so right there in her diary, in her very own handwriting. The fact she spends far more time thinking about, conversing and socializing with Jughead than Archie doesn't mean anything. It's just the way things have always been, and probably always will be. End of story. 

She vows never to think about Jughead in such an inappropriate way ever again.

It's almost one in the morning and Betty is tucked up in bed (still trying and failing to not to think about which one of her best friend's is more physically attractive) when she hears the front door of the Andrews home firmly open then shut followed by the roar of Jughead's motorcycle.

Almost immediately, Betty's phone dings to let her know she has a text message. She groans and reaches over to her nightstand to collect the device.

**Archie Andrews:** _Are you awake?_

Betty frowns and sits up before swiping her finger across the screen and tapping out a response.

**Betty Cooper:** _Sort of...what's up?_

**Archie Andrews:** _You won't believe what I found out tonight!!_

Betty is confused and for some reason also nervous, so she quickly pulls back her comforter and pads over to her window seat where she can see Archie gesticulating wildly in her direction and then typing rapidly again on his phone. Her own phone vibrates several times in quick succession and she looks down at it.

**Archie Andrews:**   _Jughead has a crush on Polly!!_

**Archie Andrews:** _No joke!!_

**Archie Andrews:** _How awesome is this!!_

**Archie Andrews:** _We have to help them get together!!_

Then, a few seconds later, one final message comes through - almost as an afterthought.

**Archie Andrews:** _Also don't tell him that you know. He made me promise not to tell anyone._

Betty suddenly feels like someone has just opened up a trap door beneath her feet and she is free falling into a pit of darkness.

She instinctively knows this is not the reaction she should be having to such news, so she tries to rationalize that she's just surprised. This turn of events is unexpected, that's all.

That, and she is uncomfortable with Archie's continued use of double exclamation points. Yes, that's got to be it.

It's just Jughead. Jug. Juggie. Her bestest pal. It's okay. It doesn't matter who Jughead likes or doesn't like. It's not her business. Her only role is to be a supportive friend.

Right? Right.

So she plasters her best fake Cooper smile on her face and nods emphatically in Archie's direction before also responding on her phone.

**Betty Cooper:** _Great! But I'm super tired. Talk more tomorrow. Night Arch. xx_

Then she reaches up and hurriedly pulls the blinds closed before Archie can attempt to continue the conversation.

It's not a total lie - she is super tired. But sleep does not come easily to her. Her mind is galloping like a race horse and she can't seem to get rid of the jittery nervousness that has settled in the pit of her stomach.

She considers herself a modern day Nancy Drew; a super sleuth with an aptitude for reading people. But she just can't understand why she is reacting this way to the news Jughead has a crush on someone.

The niggling truth that tickles at the back of her brain is the recognition that at no stage over the past several years has she ever really reacted so strongly to the news that Archie has a crush on a girl. And Archie is her guy. Or at least she wants him to be. So surely his intimate life would effect her more intensely?

At 3am she pulls out a pen and paper and starts to write a list of the multitude of gal pals Archie Andrews has introduced to their trio since middle school.

In sixth grade he'd dated Cheryl Blosssom for two whole weeks, then in seventh grade he was with Midge before she dumped him for Moose. For a while in freshman year he'd dated Val from the Pussycats before moving on to Ginger from the Vixens. In sophomore year he played seven minutes in heaven with Veronica, and then continued to hook up with her until the whole thing imploded. There'd been several casual encounters in junior year with that random brunette with the buxom chest that works at the ice cream parlor. He'd even spent months infatuated with the RHS music teacher. 

Staring at the page in front of her, it's quite evident that Archie Andrews is what Reggie Mantle would vulgarly describe as a 'man whore'. In other words, when it comes to love Archie is more of a Lothario than a Romeo.

And yet, she can't remember ever losing sleep over any of those dalliances. Except, of course, for Veronica. But that was only because she'd considered Veronica her best friend at the time and Betty took her actions as an act of personal betrayal.

After an exhaustingly restless night, she makes her way downstairs at 7am Saturday morning in search of strong coffee. Polly is already downstairs meditating (something that she never did until she met Edgar Evernever) and looks genuinely shocked by her sister's exhausted appearance.

"Betty Boo are you ill?" she gasps, standing and rushing into the kitchen.

Betty sighs, prepares herself a steaming hot cup of liquid energy and then slides onto a stool at the island bench.

"I'm fine." she replies dryly. "I just didn't sleep well last night."

"You want to talk about it?" Polly offers, reaching around Betty to snag a large green apple from the Cooper fruit bowl.

"Nothing to talk about." Betty shrugs non-commitally.

"Maybe you were up all night trying to decide which one of your beefcake besties is hotter." Polly suggests with a wink, crunching down on the apple.

Betty's eyes go wide with shock and she almost drops her coffee cup on the countertop. For the briefest of moments she wonders if Polly has been taught some voodoo mind-reading techniques at the farm. It takes another few beats of awkward silence for her to work out that Polly is joking, and then her face flushes with embarrassment.

"Oh Betty you're so obvious." Polly laughs uproariously. "So which one is it, Jughead or Archie?"

"Do you really think Jughead is cute?" Betty asks slowly.

For some reason that nervous sinking feeling returns to her tummy and she holds her breath as she waits for her sister to answer. Polly, in turn, looks positively delighted. 

"Sure." Polly grins excitedly. "I bet lots of girls do."

Wait, what? _Lots_ of girls? 

As if the sinking feeling couldn't possibly get any more overwhelming, it somehow does and Betty is suddenly glad she's sitting down. The coffee turns to dirt in her mouth and she wonders if she might vomit.

Betty is a rational and logical person. She knows this is her big opportunity to put in a good word for Jughead and encourage Polly to give the boy a chance.

Jughead, who is her best friend in all the world. Jughead, who has a crush on her very own sister. Jughead, who deserves more than anybody else she knows to be happy in life.

But something stops her and the words die in the back of her throat. She simply cannot bring herself to go through with it.

"Oh Betty don't look so worried." Polly continues, leaning her elbows on the island bench. "If you like Jughead you just have to grab the bull by it's horns. Just like I did with Jason Blossom. You know?"

No, Betty doesn't know.

And she especially thinks that Jason Blossom is a poor example for her sister to be using. The pair only dated for eight months in their senior year before spectacularly breaking up the night of the homecoming dance. The whole debacle is what triggered Polly to defer college and disappear to that cult she calls a farm to 'heal her heart.'

But that's all besides the point, because Betty doesn't like Jughead in that way. So there will be no grabbing of anybody's horns and that's that.

Betty spends the rest of her Saturday in her bedroom, attempting to work on her history essay but mostly just trying to figure out what exactly is going on with her haywire brain. By the time dinner rolls around, she has decided that her issue isn't actually that Jughead has a crush at all. It's that he has a crush on Polly specifically. It's old fashioned sibling rivalry, plain and simple.

Betty has grown up somewhat in Polly's shadow. Her older sister has always been far more outgoing and popular than her, and definitely prettier. She can still remember the time she'd asked her mother why Polly always got to wear her hair down and Alice had replied "Because your sister has lovely thick hair that frames her face just beautifully. Your hair is thin and mousey, so it looks much better up in a ponytail. That's just life, Elizabeth."

Betty loves her sister. She really, truly does. But she can't help but feel a little jealous of her every now and then. So it makes perfect sense that she's upset Jughead has a thing for her. She just wants to be put first for once, and not lag behind Polly all the time in every unspoken competition.

She sleeps well on Saturday night, content in her realization that the visceral reaction to Archie's news has been triggered by nothing more than petty jealousy.

But by Sunday afternoon, she is stewing over the whole thing once again.

She is standing next to her mother in the kitchen, peeling potatoes in preparation for dinner, when her phone buzzes in her pocket. It's Archie, and he's texting to ask if she's put in a good word for Jughead with Polly yet.

For some reason Betty just sees red. She wants to tell Archie to jump off a cliff or at the very least stop meddling in private affairs that have nothing to do with him.

The second the thought pops into her head, she starts to hear a pulsing rhythm in her ears as her blood pressure picks up.

Why should she have to be the one to do the leg work on this? Why should she have to stomp all over her own heart just so Jughead can be lazy about his love life?

"What the hell?" she mutters. "My heart? When did this become about my heart?"

"What was that, sweetheart?" Alice asks somewhat distractedly, focused primarily on stuffing the chicken for roasting.

"Nothing, Mom." she sighs, tucking her phone back into her jeans.

She spends an entire hour stewing over the fact that it's completely unreasonable of Archie to expect her to do the heavy lifting and basically manipulate her sister into dating her friend. It's unethical. It's inappropriate. It's outrageous that he's even suggesting it.

So when her phone vibrates and then illuminates on her desk, she grabs for it angrily - fully prepared to give Archie a piece of her mind.

**Jughead:** _Hey Betts. 6am pick up tomorrow morning?_

Betty's heart leaps into her throat, but once again she has no idea why. She is truly starting to lose her mind.

"Stop it, Betty. You're being stupid." she hisses, thankful she's alone in her room.

She doesn't know what's going on with herself, she doesn't know why she's a frazzled mess of emotions, but what she does know is that she's mad at Jughead. Because really it's _his_ fault this entire thing is happening. And the last thing she wants is to wrap her arms around his stupid waist on the back of his stupid bike and breathe in his stupidly delicious scent at 6am.

She only realizes she has been silent for too long when a second message arrives.

**Jughead:** _Everything okay Betts?_

No. Everything is definitely not okay. She isn't even living in the same zip code as okay anymore. Her life is basically falling apart before her eyes. The world is practically ending. But she absolutely will not be admitting any of that to Jughead Jones.

**Jughead:** _Betts?_

Betty groans and exhales sharply. She knows that if she doesn't respond to him soon he's going to start phoning her to check she's all right. He has a tendency to do kind and caring stuff like that. Not really for everyone else, just mainly for her. Usually she enjoys that he's considerate, but right now it's the last thing she wants. Her thumbs move rapidly over the glass screen of her iPhone as she taps out a response.

**Betty:** _Polly is giving me a ride tomorrow._

There. That will do. It's a short yet convincing lie, because she knows he won't worry about her if she's with someone trustworthy like Polly.

She feels guilt gnawing away at her insides, because she isn't a born liar, but she pushes the feeling aside and puts her phone away.

The next morning, Betty's senses are on high alert as she shoves her books into her backpack and creeps towards the front door.

It's 5.40am, which she knows is a ridiculous time to be leaving her house, but she's concerned that Jughead may still turn up at 6am, even in spite of her decent excuse.

Riverdale is in that changeover of seasons between fall and winter, and the early morning air is considerably crisper than Betty prefers. She tucks her hands into the pockets of her jacket and keeps her head low as she shuffles briskly down Elm Street.

The entire journey to school, Betty's ears remain peeled for the familiar rev of a motorcycle engine. She really wouldn't put it past Jughead to go out of his way to make sure she really is with Polly. In fact, she expects it of him. She also knows that if he finds her walking on her own there will surely be hell to pay.

By the time Betty arrives at the Blue and Gold office, and Jughead has made no attempt to tail her or check up on her, there are hot tears burning her eyes. She feels utterly stupid. Why did she ever think he would follow her to school?

It's silly. She knows it's silly. She told him she was with Polly and she's never lied to him before, so there's really no reason for him not to take her words at face value.

More importantly, she doesn't know why she's so upset that he _didn't_ turn into a creepy stalker. She knows she is being emotional and frivolous. Perhaps it's just coming up to her time of the month and that's causing her to be over-sensitive. She has no other explanation.

Ethel is the first team member to arrive at the office and she looks horrified to see Betty sitting atop her desk quietly crying.

"Oh Betty!" she gasps. "Are you okay?"

She immediately runs over and envelopes Betty in a warm embrace, her hands rubbing soothing circles on her back. "You don't have to tell me about it, okay? Just know that I'm here for you."

It's the perfect thing for Ethel to say and Betty is eternally grateful. She feels instantly better, and is pleased when Ethel scoots up onto the desk to sit beside her. It's cathartic to have a friend sitting so nearby, even if she's never been particularly close with Ethel over the years.

The door to the office swings open again and Betty holds her breath, then lets out a sigh of relief when she spies Reggie sauntering inside. He was initially an unwelcome forced recruit onto the paper, but now Betty finds his clown-like humor endearing and enjoys his presence at meetings. 

"Hey yo! Mantle in the house." he announces, before catching sight of Betty's red and puffy face. "Oh shit. What's the matter Mini Cooper?"

Suddenly Betty finds herself swept up in a friendly embrace for the second time in a matter of minutes. Reggie's arms are bulky and strong like Archie's and she feels somewhat awkward ensconced within them, but she's nonetheless thankful for his support.

"I'm okay. I promise." she assures him, extracting her pocket mirror from her backpack and making sure her face looks clean and presentable.

Other members of the Blue and Gold staff trickle into the room over the following fifteen minutes, but by the time Jughead finally arrives Betty is back to feeling happy and confident. She is carefully wedged between Ethel and Reggie, and she can almost feel the silent moral support rolling off them in waves.

When the meeting finishes, Ethel grabs her arm and they leave the office together. Betty doesn't afford Jughead so much as a backward glance and she has never felt more grateful for good friends. Especially good friends who don't ask for explanations. 

Calculus is her first class of the day, and it's usually one she enjoys. Partly because she's always found mathematics engaging, but mostly because she sits directly next to Jughead. She almost can't believe she has found herself at a juncture in her life where sitting next to Jughead is a _bad_ thing, and yet here she is. 

He spends most of the lesson trying very hard to get her attention. At one stage, he even resorts to throwing scrunched up wads of paper at her (though he thankfully doesn't sink as low as spitballing them). But Betty knows without a doubt that if she turns to look at him, and catches sight of his soulful blue eyes and the sad puppy face that he pulls off so well, she is going to crumble.

She is absolutely resolute that she will _not_ cry in front of him. She cannot let him know that she's become so petty as to have an almost quarter-life crisis over his crush on Polly. It's inane and she knows it.

As luck would have it (or lack thereof) she also shares her following class with Jughead. This time she is prepared enough to skip right past her regular desk and chooses the seat furthest away from him, which unfortunately happens to be next to Dilton Doiley.

The guy has always been a bit of a freak and he smells like a mixture of grass clippings and stale body odor. Betty tries not to let it get to her, but it's a stark reminder of how strange her life has become since the moment she found out about Jughead's little crush on Polly.

She's never been more grateful to arrive at her gym class, which Jughead is not a part of. She is so tired she can barely keep up during the game of basketball, but at least she is free from the burden of avoiding Jughead and the need for her to provide him with an explanation for her wacky behavior. As the class ends and she heads towards the girls locker room, she is bailed up by Archie.

"Hey!" he greets her warmly. "You didn't text me back on the weekend."

"Sorry." Betty swallows over a lump in her throat, once again scrambling for a lie. "Mom had me helping her with Register stuff."

"Well did you at least get a chance to talk to Polly about Jug?" he asks enthusiastically.

Betty locks her jaw together so tightly she can actually hear her teeth crunch and grind. Before she can stop herself, her fury is openly displayed on her face.

"For the love of God, Archie, can you please just stop? I don't want to talk about Jughead anymore." she seethes.

Archie is a little slow on the uptake, and he finally twigs to the fact that Betty is upset about something.

"Are you alright?" he frowns. "Did you and Jug have a fight about something?"

Betty sighs and shakes her head. Archie is honestly the last person she wants to talk to about this whole mess.

She wistfully recalls all the times growing up when Archie was the first person she'd turn to in a time of crisis. She knows she has always kept him up on a pedestal.

But standing there in the school gym she realizes that _Jughead_ has actually been her go-to person for a number of years now.

The first person Betty reaches out to when something goes wrong in her life is Jughead. The first person she reaches out to when something exciting happens is also Jughead. What exactly does that mean, and how has she not noticed it before?

"Everything is fine, Archie." she says stiffly. "I'm fine."

Then she quickly hurries into the locker room where he can't follow her.

Most of the girls have already cleared out, but Veronica is not quite casually leaning up against the lockers and she stands to attention when Betty appears.

"Hey there, B." she starts tentatively. "I know we aren't exactly soul sisters these days, but I'm penitent to admit I overheard some of your little tête-à-tête outside with Archie and I just wanted to see if you need anything."

Betty is shaking her head even before Veronica finishes her sentence.

"Thank you, but no." she says sternly, sitting on the bench seat and beginning to untie the laces of her shoes.

But for some reason, Veronica doesn't leave as Betty expects she will. Instead, she chooses to sit down beside her. 

"Look, I'm sorry." Veronica sighs. "I heard Archie mention you're fighting with Jughead Jones. I know how hard it can be when you're squabbling with your beau. If you need anything, I'm here for you girl. Truly."

Betty frowns and it takes her a minute to process Veronica's words, then she's shaking her head again.

"Jughead isn't my boyfrend." she explains in a rush. "He's my best friend. Nothing more."

Veronica looks truly confused by this revelation.

"Oh. I see." she practically splutters. "My mistake. I just assumed. I mean, well, you two seem so...symbiotic."

Veronica's assumption about Betty and Jughead's dating status seriously disturbs Betty. If Veronica, an extremely astute classmate, thinks they are dating then perhaps everyone does. Betty begins to wonder if she has been blind to something that literally everyone around her can already see.

"Symbiotic? More like non-simpatico." Betty scoffs, before softening. "But honestly, V, I appreciate your concern. It's nice that you care."

Veronica smiles and carefully scoots a touch closer. It's been a while since the two girls have conversed in such a non-threatening manner and Betty is almost glad that they're finally interacting. She loves her two best friends, but life can be a bit of a testosterone fest. Now that Polly spends most of her time at the farm she misses having a close female companion.

"Of course I care." Veronica says earnestly. "I've never stopped caring, B. I've always hoped one day we could put that nasty business from sophomore year behind us. Say, why don't you come and sit with me at lunch? Come on now, I won't take no for an answer."

Betty does consider giving no as her answer, but then she reminds herself that sitting at her regular table will involve sitting next to Jughead.

On the flip side, she also remembers that Veronica's the Vice-Captain of the Vixens squad and therefore has a place in court at the Vixens table. And they aren't exactly the most warm and inviting group...

"You think Cheryl wouldn't mind?" Betty squeaks. 

"I'd like to see her try to stop us." Veronica grins.

Cheryl does indeed try to stop them.

When the self-anointed HBIC realizes that she isn't going to win the argument with Veronica, she deliberately chooses her seat directly on the other side of Betty so that she can make lunch as unpleasant as possible.

In the space of twenty minutes Betty is subject to no less than seven verbal barbs about her 'hippy trash' sister, four remarks about her parents' loveless marriage and more than one jibe alleging Betty's ponytails are giving her a receding hairline.

Betty knows that Jughead is just across the cafeteria and she longs to run to him. He's her emotional protector, and he hates Cheryl just as much as she does. She imagines herself tucked into his warm embrace and somehow feels slightly better. Even if it's not a possibility in reality. 

"I hear that hillbilly farm promotes free-love and polyamory." Cheryl chirps, her red lipstick jarring against her pale white skin. "Is it true that your Janis Joplin wannabe sister has six boyfriends at the moment?"

"She doesn't have a boyfriend at all." Betty snaps, trying hard not to let Blossom pettiness get to her.

"Seems about right." Cheryl nods happily, as if that's actually the answer she was hoping to hear. "Nobody wants to follow after a class act like JJ. She'll probably be alone forever now."

Betty's stomach begins churning again and she pushes her plate of salad away. The truth is, somebody _does_ want Polly. And the exact reason she is subjecting herself to this utter torture at the Vixen's table is the fact that the someone in question is Jughead.

After school on Monday, Betty tells her mother she is feeling unwell and heads straight to her room. She hides out there all night, clutching her phone in her hand and desperately hoping that Jughead will reach out to her.

She knows instinctively that she's being a total idiot. Why would any guy try to contact her after she's spent the entire day blowing him off?

At ten o'clock, she turns her lights out and a single tear rolls down her cheek.

She wonders if Jughead is okay. She wonders if he is lying in his own bed at the exact same moment, but instead of thinking about her he's thinking about Polly. That thought alone is enough to prevent her from falling into restful sleep the entire night.

By Tuesday lunch, she is running on steam alone. Her close friend Kevin buys her an extra large cup of coffee to try and help her stay awake, but it isn't quite doing the trick. if anything, it only makes her come across as slightly deranged.

At least her tiredness is enough to dull her senses to the onslaught of Cheryl's obvious disgust that Betty is once again joining them at the Vixens table.

"Cooper are you lost?" she snarls. "I mean, didn't I kick you off this team two years ago for being too fat?"

Betty had indeed been kicked off the team. But only because of the fallout from her sister's break-up with Cheryl's older brother (that had entirely nothing to do with her on any level whatsoever). She doesn't know what her body mass has to do with the matter, but she really isn't in the mood to listen to barbs about her size.

Betty turns to Veronica and sadly shakes her head. "Maybe I should just go."

"B, perhaps you should just bite the bullet and talk to Jughead." Veronica suggests, placing a comforting hand on Betty's arm. "I can see what this is doing to you. I can see how much you miss him. Just go and talk to him."

Betty decides that Veronica is probably right. This entire ordeal is unsustainable. She can't continue down this dark path anymore. She needs to just face up to Jughead, tell him that she's sorry, and somehow pick up the pieces of her heart (that is for some reason completely aching).

She rises from her seat and starts towards her usual table, where she can see Archie and Jughead hanging out together. But as she nears them, she starts to pick up snippets of their conversation and Jughead's voice reaches her ears.

"Polly is my dream girl and my soul mate."

All the blood rushes from Betty's head and she suddenly feels like she's going to pass out. She can't listen to this. She just can't. She wants to die. She wants a hole to open up in the middle of the cafeteria and swallow her.

Without another moment's hesitation, she runs as fast as her feet will carry her. She doesn't stop running until she reaches the Blue and Gold office.

She is a crying mess as she collapses onto the closest chair.

The door opens seconds later, and she is relieved to see Veronica rushing towards her. "Oh B."

"I...I..." Betty splutters between hiccupping sobs, trying to make sense of her racing emotions.

Then suddenly, for the first time all week, her thoughts assemble themselves with clarity and she understands what is actually going on with her.

"I think I'm in love with Jughead." she whispers.

It's the first time this thought has clearly appeared inside her mind, and when she speaks it aloud she realizes the weight of its truth. She can't believe she hasn't seen it before now. It's so obvious.

She's in love with Jughead.

_Not_ Archie.

Jughead.

Veronica smiles sweetly and starts rubbing Betty's back.

"Duh, girl." is all she replies.

Betty feels like a huge weight has just been lifted off her shoulders. She starts to wonder how long ago she'd actually switched her affections from one of her best friends to the other.

She recalls sophomore year when she'd been so angry with Veronica for kissing Archie and punished her by cutting off their friendship. But then she'd continued her friendship with Archie regardless of his actions. With hindsight, she knows now that she was furious with Veronica for going behind her back but _not_ furious with Archie because she actually wasn't crushing on him anymore, even way back then.

Realizing that she loves Jughead is like a glorious revelation. She suddenly feels free and at peace. The world makes sense once more and she is flying high.

Until the events of Friday night send her crashing back down to Earth.

"But Jughead is in love with Polly." Betty sobs despondently.

"Oh Betty. I'm so sorry." Veronica sighs, before bringing her in for a bone crushing hug. "Come to my place after school, okay? We can lament men together. I'll take care of you, I promise."

Betty forces a smile and swipes at the tears still stagnant on her cheeks. She is appreciative that her friendship with someone she'd previously considered an important part of her relatively small social circle is back on track.

"Thanks, V. I'd like that."

Veronica can't help herself and she squeals with delight. "We can do manis and pedis!"

As it turns out, the girls have a lot of fun together. So Betty spends Wednesday afternoon with Veronica too.

It feels safe and pleasant. They are collected straight after school in Veronica's slick black town car and head directly back to her apartment (carefully avoiding places like Pops where Jughead may appear).

They watch trashy rom coms, eat popcorn and sip mimosas. They talk about school and potential future colleges (NYU is Veronica's number one, but it's Columbia or Yale for Betty because her mother is insisting on Ivy League or nothing). What they deliberately don't talk about is boys, and Betty finds this refreshing.

On Thursday at lunch time, the Vixens table is buzzing as usual and Cheryl is on fire with her insults.

Betty is doing her best to silently rebuff them, until Cheryl makes a completely unnecessary remark about Jughead. Of course she isn't aware of the nerve she is striking with Betty, she's merely just trying to use any avenue she can to be petty and annoying.

"So can I just assume you are now becoming a permanent fixture at our table, Elizabeth?" she asks, accompanying her words with a violent eye roll. "Surely there are better ways to prevent that cretin with the smelly hat from eating all your lunch food."

Betty feels undeniable rage building inside her. Being angry at Jughead doesn't prevent her from also wanting to defend him. She turns to Cheryl with venomous eyes.

"I'll thank you to keep your bitchy comments to yourself, you contemptible viper." she snaps. "I've had just about enough of you denigrating the Riverdale student body, and in particular my family and friends. Do you want to take this outside? Because I'm not opposed to serving you a taste of your own medicine."

A stunned silence immediately falls across the entire Vixens table, save for a shocked Midge who is choking on her iced tea (but trying ever so hard to do so quietly). Cheryl looks the most surprised of all, and everyone watches her nervously to gauge how she is going to respond.

Eventually, her scarlet lips curl into an unmistakable grin. "Betty Cooper I never knew you had such fire in you." she says. "Come an hour early to the football game tomorrow night and you can audition to get your place back on the Vixens squad."

It's the best news Betty has heard all week. She is thrilled at the prospect of regaining her place on the team, especially because it will allow her rekindled friendship with Veronica to grow and prosper.

The exciting development is almost, but not quite, enough to take her mind off Jughead.

On Friday morning, her mother finally notices that she is pushing her pancakes around on her plate instead of actually eating them.

"You're looking a little thin, Elizabeth." she informs her curtly. "Which isn't normally a bad thing, except you also look sallow."

Betty knows the ice queen who gave birth to her isn't going to appreciate hearing that Betty is too lovesick over a Southside Serpent to eat or sleep, so instead she just shrugs in a non-committal way and deliberately forces a large forkful of food into her mouth.

"Just stressing over my college applications, I guess." she explains, relieved when her mother seems to take her answer at face value.

Breakfast conversation quickly turns to the early admissions applications Betty recently submitted for Brown, Yale, Columbia and Princeton. Betty is far too exhausted to stress about whether she will be accepted to a college that boasts the Mama Coop stamp of approval, but she musters all the fakery she can until her mom excuses her from the table. 

Betty is standing on the front step of her house waiting for Archie to appear and walk with her to school when a spluttering old pickup truck pulls up to the curb. Moments later, Polly comes rushing out of the house with her luggage slung over her shoulder.

"Um, what's going on?" Betty frowns, indicating toward the dirty looking young man waving at them from the drivers seat of the pickup.

"I'm headed back to the farm, Betty Boo." Polly says, both sad and excited. "Will you promise to come and visit me soon? I hope I don't have to wait until Christmas to see you again."

Betty makes a promise that she has absolutely no intention of fulfilling, then let's her entire body wash over with relief as the old truck disappears around the corner of Elm Street. She knows it's an absolutely awful thing to think about her own sister - especially a sister that she loves so much. But at the same time she secretly hopes that Polly will be both out of sight and out of mind for Jughead.

If Polly isn't back until Christmas then Betty has a couple of months to convince him that she's the Cooper girl for him. If that doesn't work, at least by that point she'll be on the count down to graduation and a college hopefully as far away from Riverdale as possible.

She briefly wonders if Dartmouth might be a better option than Columbia, because it's far enough away that she definitely won't be able to even pop home for weekends. Or perhaps she can convince her mother that Ivy League isn't so important after all and try gunning for Northwestern. She wonders what the weather is like in Illinois. 

She spends most of Friday classes mentally preparing herself for the inevitable face-to-face meeting with Jughead that will occur at their weekly family dinner later that evening. She knows it's well past time for her to put her big girl panties on and admit to him that she is very sorry, and hope that he still wants to be her friend. If he _doesn't_ want to be her friend she has no idea how she will ever convince him to be anything _more_ than friends.

Betty thinks she should probably apologize to him before they get to Pops, so she works up the courage to approach him at lunch time. But then Veronica commandeers her on the way to the cafeteria and instead drags her into the music room to run through a couple of Vixens routines, in preparation for her 5pm cheerleading try-out.

After the final class of the day, Betty ducks into the bathroom to use the facilities and is shocked by her appearance. She has dark circles under her eyes, her hair is a flat mess and her cheeks are sunken and pale. She definitely isn't in any state to speak with Jughead at the moment (not unless she wants to horrify him with her ugliness).

Instead, she rushes to her locker to find the books she will need for the weekend, then plans to head back to the girls locker room where she knows Veronica keeps a very well stocked emergency makeup kit. Her head is down and she's concentrating so hard on finding the right words to tell Jughead she's sorry without implicating herself in any kind of pathetic crush (because he's not ready to hear about it yet - at least not until Polly is out of his mind) that she doesn't feel his presence in the school hallway.

When she finally looks up and sees him, she immediately panics and her brain slips into overdrive. All she can think about is the fact she is basically dishevelled and she needs to escape before he catches a good look at her.

_Stay calm Betty_ , she thinks, _stay calm stay calm stay calm_.

She doesn't even realize that she's unconsciously enacting her very worst coping mechanism until Jughead is suddenly right behind her, spinning her around and trying desperately to unclench her fists.

Betty is mortified at having been caught hurting herself, but even more so she's just shocked because Jughead is touching her hands. His skin is warm against hers and for the first time in a week she's close enough that she can smell his comforting musky scent.

There's a distinct ringing tone in her ears, and her eyes are struggling to focus in on his face. She can see his mouth moving, but she can't quite comprehend the words he is speaking.

Without a shadow of a doubt, Betty's feelings for Archie have never manifested themselves so strongly on both a physical and emotional level. She is certainly seeing the difference now between a silly childhood crush and a serious romantic attachment. She's got it for Jughead really,  _really_ bad. 

She shakes her head a little, to clear her racing mind and finally some words break through the silent abyss.

"...I care about you too much."

If Betty weren't so tired, she would be overjoyed to hear the word 'care' come out of Jughead's mouth - especially in relation to her. But Betty _is_ so tired. So instead she just thinks about Polly and how this beautiful boy standing in front of her will probably never care as much about her as he does about her sister. She's not touched, she's just enraged.

"Care?" she splutters. "You're a liar!"

Betty regrets what she has said the exact moment she says it. She knows she has made a terrible mistake, but her brain to mouth filter doesn't seem to be functional. The rational part of her knows that Jughead cares about her. Of course he does. They're best friends, and have been best friends since they were small children. It's really not Jughead's fault that he doesn't love her the way she loves him and she shouldn't hold it against him.

And yet, somehow, she does.

 Jughead is looking agitated now, and Betty definitely doesn't blame him.

"For crying out loud," he snaps. "Can you please just tell me what it is that I've done to make you so mad?"

She takes a deep breath and steels her nerves. This is her big chance. Her opportunity to explain to him how sorry she is. To tell him how stupid she's been, and how she really just wants to go back to the way things were. At least for now.

But instead, once again her stupid brain focuses in on Polly and her petty jealousy.

She can feel the words rising in her throat, like bile burning her insides as it bubbles up her oesophagus. She wants to swallow them back down, but they just keep forcing their way onto her tongue.

"I..." she begins.

She clenches her jaw shut and tries to prevent the ridiculous mess of words that want desperately to be heard.

_I love you. I can't understand why you've done this to me. We were supposed to always be a team. What does Polly have that I don't have? How long has this been going on? You don't even know her that well._

She is working so hard to suppress these thoughts, that eventually her mouth opens of its own volition and she blurts the first thing that makes sense in her jumbled mind.

"I just thought you'd pick me!" she shrieks.

Betty is mortified by what she has just admitted to.

Embarrassed, appalled, humiliated and maybe even a little bit terrified. She has possibly never sunk so low.

Jughead's mouth is slightly agape. His eyes equally wide in confusion.

Not quite knowing what else to do, Betty simply turns and runs as fast as she can - out of the building and far, far away from Jughead Jones.


	3. Bughead - Friday night

 Betty makes it down the front steps of the school, across the grass and to the road before she stops to evaluate what exactly she has just done.

And by "done", she recognizes that she has unloaded a bunch of immature emotional crap onto her best friend in the whole world. Entirely none of her feelings are Jughead's fault, though she has just explicitly made them his problem. It's entirely unfair of her and if she doesn't fix it quickly she fears she may lose him forever.

"Shit." she hisses, lower lip tugged anxiously between her teeth.

She knows how selfishly she is behaving. She can feel it in her bones. She needs to find him and she needs to find him fast.

Betty hitches her backpack further up onto her shoulder, then quickly turns again and heads back towards the building. But by the time she reaches her locker, the hallway is completely deserted and there's no dark haired loner boys in sight.

The knife proverbially twists in her gut as she wanders down to the Blue and Gold office (empty), the cafeteria (empty) and even ducks her head into the janitors closets (all empty). Eventually she sighs and has to accept that Jughead is no longer on campus.

A quick glance at her wrist watch reminds her that it's 3.15pm and she's due at the football field at 5pm for her second chance Vixens trial. It's important to her that she does well at the try-out, because she really did love being a Vixen, but finding Jughead and if necessary groveling at his feet is undoubtedly her first priority.

Using her Betty Cooper strategic thinking skills, she walks double time to the girls locker room and slides a bobby pin from her bun to break into Veronica's locker and do some unauthorised borrowing of her makeup kit. Though she knows Veronica would gladly offer to help and loan her the products, she still feels slightly devious. 

She fixes her face as best she can (there's only so much artful blending she can do with foundation that's a perfect match for Veronica's skin shade and not her own) and pulls her hair into a perfectly preened ponytail. Appraising herself in the mirror, she is relieved to see her old shiny self staring back at her. Even if it's just trickery of makeup, it's better than the alternative.

To save time, she changes into her old Vixens uniform and then covers her top half with a navy blue Riverdale High sweatshirt. Betty may be preparing herself for a Vixens audition, but she knows it's best if she doesn't openly look like a northside cheerleader where she's about to venture.

The journey to the southside is difficult, especially on a limited time frame when she doesn't have the station wagon with her. She catches a bus part of the way, then jogs to the Sunnyside Trailer Park. She keeps her eyes to the ground, and her grip on her bag tightens as she makes her way to the back of the lot where the Jones trailer is situated.

She is gripped by nerves, but pushes herself forward with Cooper determination and raps several times with a closed fist on the paint faded door. Moments later she hears footsteps, and then the wood swings open to reveal a Jones, but sadly not the Jones she is looking for.

FP's eyes widen in confusion when he catches sight of her, and Betty's eyes in turn fall straight to the beer bottle clutched in his hand. She knows Jughead's dad recently commenced a new construction job (or so Jughead informed her recently during one of their late night d&m's), so she has no idea why he is home at this time on a Friday afternoon - especially home and drinking.

"Uh, hello Mr Jones." she mutters, suddenly uncomfortable. "Is Jughead home?"

"Jughead?" FP asks, as if he has momentarily forgotten that he has a son. "No. He's at school."

"School finished a while ago." Betty replies sheepishly. "I, uh. I'm just...it's okay I'll talk to him later."

She turns to leave, but FP's voice halts her movement and she looks at him quizically over her shoulder.

"It's Becky, right?" he asks, taking a prolonged swig of his beer.

"Betty." she corrects him firmly.

She's only been best friends with this man's son for close to _fifteen_ years, and she wants to tell him that Betty isn't really that hard of a name to remember. But instead, she remains tight lipped.

"Try the Whyte Wyrm. The kid likes to hang out there sometimes with the other young Serpents." FP says with a proud smile. "I'll be heading there myself pretty soon. I can drive you?"

Once again, Betty's eyes travel straight to the alcohol FP is holding. She has to weigh her options very quickly here - it will certainly save a significant amount of time if she accepts his offer. Plus she can avoid walking the somewhat perilous streets of the southside. But at the same time, it's a huge risk getting into a vehicle with anyone who is possibly (or probably) drunk.

"How about I drive us there in your truck?" she offers, thinking on the fly.

FP takes his time to to mull over her offer, and Betty wonders if he even knows he stinks like a brewery.

"Sounds alright." he finally nods, digging in his jeans pocket for the keys and then tossing them in her direction.

FP gives her somewhat hazy directions to the bar, and the truck is desperately in need of repairs, but they finally make it to to the Whyte Wyrm in one piece. He grunts his thanks in her direction as she carefully passes him back the keys, and then heads across the parking lot. He joins a congregation of older bikers in black leather jackets who are standing around their motorcycles, and it apparently takes FP about three seconds to forget she is even there. Betty is somehow glad of it.

Her nerves have metamorphosed from a small flurry into a wily blizzard. She can feel herself physically trembling now, as she climbs the concrete steps and places her palms flat on the red panel door to force it open. She hopes and prays that Jughead is inside, because she's going to look awful stupid in there otherwise.

She has never been in a biker bar before, and she has no idea what to expect. Particularly as it's just past four in the afternoon. Do bikers drink at such a time? She supposes they do.

There's a sheen of smoke in the air, and the stench of alcohol and cigarettes. It assaults her senses and she almost chickens out. From her apprehensive perch at the doorway she can spy pool tables, an old wooden staircase and seating tucked away in dark corners. It doesn't look too terrifying, and yet she is ready to pass out from fear.

There's a petite woman with pink hair setting up music speakers near a small stage. She's blasting something loud and grungy that Betty wants to suggest is Nirvana or Pearl Jam (but perhaps that's just because those are the only two grunge bands Betty actually knows).  As she steps further into the Wyrm, the woman looks up and suddenly catches sight of her.

The appearance of a northsider in the bar must be truly shocking, because in her surprise the woman yanks the aux cord from the speaker and the music screeches then cuts out. It's like something out of a really bad romantic comedy. Or maybe a horror film. One or the other.

Jughead is sitting up the back of the Wyrm, wedged between Sweet Pea and Joaquin as they share a bag of chips. He is trying to stay engaged in the conversation but his mind is continually wandering to Betty and what she actually meant back at school. He didn't pick her? Pick her for what? A class project? Does she want to be invited to the school dance? She knows he hates dances.

When Toni abruptly kills the music, Jughead glances up in confusion. At that moment, his eyes are instantly drawn to the familiar blonde hovering near the door. It's Betty. At the Wyrm. Oh holy Jesus.

She looks petrified as her eyes dart around the room - clearly searching him out. She's wearing white sneakers, a navy blue mini skirt and a RHS sweater with her hair up in a ponytail and her makeup perfected. He can't take his eyes off her. She looks like a snack. A delicious snack. He fleetingly thinks that he wants to devour her, then realizes how creepy that is.

"Check out the sex on legs." Sweet Pea growls excitedly.

The disgusting words are enough to spur Jughead into action. It's almost as if the reality of the situation finally dawns on him. The Whyte Wyrm (and the southside in general) is no place for a girl like Betty Cooper. She's too sweet; too good. He knows she'd try to argue otherwise but damn it let her try.

He jumps up from his chair so quickly that it topples backwards and lands on the floor with a reverberating thud. The sound draws Betty's attention and she immediately looks abundantly relieved to see him.

"Betts?" he gasps. "What...?"

"I'm sorry for coming here." she blurts out anxiously, her voice echoing in the sudden silence of the room. "I know this is your place with your, uh, other friends. I went to your trailer first, but you weren't home."

The realization that she has been wandering around the streets of the southside makes him feel a little ill. He wants to yell at her for putting herself in danger. He also wants to yell at her for putting herself into a position where neanderthals like Sweet Pea can leer at her. But she's here for him and surely that has to mean something.

"It's okay, Betts." he says assuringly, even as he thinks it's not. "It's okay."

All the same, he makes his way over and grips her by the crook of her elbow then guides her quickly back outside into the parking lot. For some reason he feels safer away from the prying eyes of the other young Serpents. 

"How did you get here?" he asks, his eyes searching the lot for her mother's car. "Please tell me you didn't walk. Betts how many times do I have to remind you that the southside is dangerous?"

"I have pepper spray and I know self defence. I'm nimble like a fox." she counters with a suggestive smirk.

Suddenly Jughead wonders if she is trying to flirt with him. Surely not? His lack of response seems to deflate her, because she bites her lip before speaking again.

"Actually I came in your dad's truck." she shrugs, indicating to the rusty old vehicle parked somewhere over her shoulder.

This is not the response Jughead is expecting to come out of her mouth, and it clearly must show on his face because Betty almost seems to cower for a moment.

"Did you steal it?" he splutters incredulously.

"No!" she says fervently. "Your dad was home when I knocked on the door. He said he was coming here anyway and to be honest Juggie I didn't really think it was safe for him to drive. So I drove."

"Wait, what?" Jughead frowns deeply. "My dad? He's here? Oh Christ. Looks like his new job is bust."

Jughead can feel his palms go sweaty, so he absently wipes them on his jeans. His father's lack of ability to hold down a job for more than four weeks is troubling to say the least, and just a rancid cherry on top of the shit cake that has been his week so far.

"I'm so sorry, Jug." Betty sighs, wringing her hands together nervously. "I really am. For your dad _and_ for coming here. I know you don't like Archie and I mixing with your life here."

Once again, he wants to yell at her for being so silly. As much as he hates the idea of Betty in the southside, he also definitely wants her mixing with every aspect of his life. It's hypocrisy he knows he's only allowed to quietly entertain because he's eighteen and still learning about life. 

But his heart is also pounding in his chest and his stomach is twisting in knots. She has made such an effort to seek him out and his whole body is flooded with warmth just knowing that she still cares. That she still wants to be his friend. At this point, it's all he can possibly hope for.

"You have my number, you know." he smirks and rolls his eyes. "You could have just called."

"I know." she sighs again. "But after the way I've behaved I really just wanted to apologize to you in person. I've been an awful friend to you this week, Jughead. Just the worst. I have no excuse for my behavior. I can't tell you how sorry I am."

He notices then that she is trembling. He's not sure if she's overly emotional, or cold. Either way he doesn't hesitate before stripping his black Serpents jacket off his own back and draping it across her shoulders. 

For some reason tears spring to her eyes at his gesture and she grips the lapels to pull the fabric tighter around herself. It's almost as if she is trying to wrap herself in a Jughead cocoon.

"I'm sorry too, Betty." he says earnestly. "I'm not sure what I'm sorry for, to be honest, because I don't know what I did to upset you last week. But it tore me up inside knowing you didn't want to talk to me. So I'll accept your apology if you accept mine?"

Jughead hopes this will be the end of the matter, but Betty is horrified by his declaration and reaches out to fist the fabric of his shirt inside her hands. Her palms spread warmth to the skin of his chest and his heart is thumping so hard that he wonders if she can feel it too.

"No, Juggie." she says insistently. "You did nothing wrong. Nothing. I've been a total jerk."

"But then why..." he trails off, his blue eyes carefully examining the blush that is creeping across her pale cheeks.

Betty is suddenly tremendously nervous again and she is begins to ramble semi-coherently.

"I never expected to react so poorly when Archie told me. I completely messed up." she says. "He wanted me to help you. Archie did. He asked me to talk to Polly on your behalf. And something inside me just shut down. I can't explain it, Jughead. Maybe it was petty jealousy because everybody always thinks Polly is the better sister, and you're my best friend so I just wanted you to like me best. More than her. Oh gosh this is a bad explanation. I'm messing this all up. I never intended to tell you those things. Can I start from the beginning and try again?"

Betty's fingers are still gripping at his shirt, but suddenly Jughead can't breathe. He is struggling to process even the simplest of thoughts. He finds himself praying to a God he doesn't really believe in, that Betty isn't saying what he suspects she is saying.

"Wait. Wait!" he demands, his own hands coming up to encircle each of her own in an act of worried desperation. "Please for the love of all that is good in this world, tell me that our idiot best friend Archie Andrews did _not_ inform you I have a thing for your sister."

At this, Betty says nothing. She merely steps forward and buries her face in his chest. She is clearly embarrassed and very upset. 

Jughead, on the other hand, is plain mortified. He lets go of her hands and moves his fingers up to grip her shoulders, then gently pries her far enough away so that he can look her in the eye.

"Betts, I don't have a thing for your sister." he whispers solemnly. "I don't."

"It's okay, Jug." she insists, her voice oddly high pitched. "You don't have to hide it from me. Sure, I acted poorly when I first found out. But you're my best friend and if you like Polly then I'll try everything I can to -"

"I don't have a thing for your sister." he blurts again, so shocked he can hardly formulate any other coherent words.

"It doesn't matter to me either way, I'll just be happy if you say we can still be friends." She smiles at him warmly, full of hope.  

"Of course, Betts." he replies quickly. "That was never up for debate."

Betty's shoulders sag with relief, but Jughead can see from the distant look in her eyes that she doesn't believe he is telling the truth. At least not about the fact he doesn't have a thing for Polly. 

He's going to kill Archie.

Straight up murder him.

Bury him in the Andrews back yard. Goodbye and good riddance.

This situation is out of hand and Jughead really doesn't know how he can possibly convince Betty that he isn't into her sister without also telling her the truth about his feelings for her.

Damn it. Okay. 

"Listen Betty..." he starts nervously. "The truth is - "

Betty suddenly jerks backwards, her eyes wide in panic, and Jughead clamps his lips shut in surprise. She reaches into the front pocket of her backpack and withdraws her phone to glance at the time.

"Oh shit!" she gasps. "I've got to go. Can we talk at Pops later?"

"Sure, absolutely." Jughead affirms, albeit defeatedly.

He can't believe he very nearly almost told Betty about his lifelong crush on her. Perhaps it was fate intervening to save him the humiliation.

Betty slips off the Serpents jacket and the second it's back in Jughead's grasp she turns and starts rushing across the parking lot, headed for the road that will lead her back to the northside. It takes Jughead just a moment to process that she arrived at the Wyrm in his dad's truck so she has no way of getting home now other than to walk. And there's absolutely _zero_ possibility he's going to allow that to happen. Like, not even in an alternate dimension would he find that remotely acceptable.

"Hey! Betts, hold up!" he calls after her. "Don't even think about it. I'll give you a ride."

Betty bites her lip nervously, as if pondering his offer. Though it's not an offer at all, really. It's a demand and they both know it. There's an unspoken understanding that the only way Betty is leaving this parking lot is on the back of Jughead's bike.

"Thank you." she mutters, scurrying quickly over to his motorcycle and pulling on his old black helmet with the crown scratched on the front.

"Where to?" he asks, reveling in the feeling of her arms wrapped around his waist.

It feels like he's home. _F_ _inally_. It's been a hell of a week, but Betty is back by his side now (or behind him, but that's only because they can't feasibly sit side-by-side on a motorcycle) and that means all the rest of the bullshit in his life can simply fade into the background.

"The football game." she answers. "You're the best, Juggie."

If someone conducted a pop quiz of the fastest and easiest ways to break Jughead's heart, those seven words would have to be very close to the best possible answer.

_The football game._

But of course. Because now that she is secure in the knowledge that her friendship with Jughead is back on track, Betty is free to return to her usual favorite pass-time of pining over Archie Andrews. Some things never change.

Jughead wishes he could hold this against her, he really does. But it's Betty. So he doesn't.

_You're the best, Juggie._

Yes, yes he really is. Especially when he revs the motor of his bike and drives her straight to Riverdale High, even as his own world is crumbling around him. This really is the definition of 'I will do anything for the girl I love' and he knows how pathetic it is.

"I'll see you at Pops later!" she grins, squeezing his arm as she clambers off the bike and rushes towards the football field. She doesn't even offer him a cursory backward glance. She just plonks the helmet atop his head then disappears into the fading sunlight, her little blue skirt flouncing around her thighs like it's dancing of it's own accord.

It's too early for him to go and sit at at the diner, especially as he doesn't want to be alone with his thoughts. So Jughead turns the bike around and heads back to the Wyrm to find FP.

His father is sitting at a stool sidled up against the bar, his elbows resting on the wooden countertop and his face in his hands. He's almost too inebriated to explain the full story to Jughead in a rational way, but the general gist is that the construction site had been shut down by the State Department of Labor due to breaches of the safety and health code. So his father's sudden return to the unemployment heap has nothing to do with his inability to work, and everything to do with terrible bad luck.

Jughead muses that perhaps the entire Jones family is burdened with a curse to endure bad luck until the end of days. It almost sounds like the tempting plot for a new novel, and he itches to return home and fetch his laptop. But instead, he drives his father back to their trailer (sensibly hiding the keys to the truck to stop FP from returning to the bar to further drink away his sorrows) then returns to the Wyrm on foot to collect his bike and head over to Pops.

After parking his bike, he glances at his wrist watch (a gift from Betty on his birthday a few weeks prior) and is pleased to see that he has timed his arrival rather well. He will probably only have to wait a few minutes until the football crowd starts pouring through the front door of the Chock'lit Shoppe. After that, he plans to limit himself to just one hour of torture watching Betty fawn all over Archie. Then he will go home and go straight to bed.

Jughead waves at Pop Tate as he meanders through the front door, and is surprised to see Pop offer a smug smirk and a wink. It's very unlike the kind, older gentleman and Jughead is mildly perplexed.

The sentiment grows to complete confounded bewilderment when Jughead drops into his usual spot in his usual seat for Friday Family Dinner and realizes that the booth isn't empty.

Betty is sitting opposite him.

Betty is not at the football game.

Betty is...waiting for him?

The sweater is gone and Jughead can now see that she is actually wearing a Vixens uniform. It's not Halloween so he isn't quite sure what's going on.

"Um..." he starts, pointing lamely at the outfit because he hasn't yet regained his ability to speak coherently.

Betty's face lights up completely and she is truly dazzling. "I'm back on the squad!" she squeals in delight. "I start training again next week!"

Jughead finds himself beaming back at her because he remembers how devastated she'd been to lose her place a few years ago. "That's great, Betts. How'd you manage to swing that?"

Betty's smile becomes a mischievous grin. "I threatened to fight Cheryl Blossom."

This statement in and of itself is completely bizarre and doesn't make a great deal of sense. Yet when applied to Riverdale's head cheerleader it somehow fits perfectly and no further explanation is required.

"I'd pay to see that." Jughead chuckles, glad that they seem to be falling into a comfortable comradery.

"Maybe you could keep your money, but come to the game next week?" she suggests, eyeing him intensely. "It'll be my first time cheering in a while and I could use the moral support."

He'll be there. She doesn't need to ask him twice. It doesn't matter that Archie has been begging him to come to games since he first joined the football team back in freshman year.

It then occurs to Jughead that if Betty is back on the squad she should really be at the game that is currently taking place. He wonders once again if she has simply been sitting at Pops waiting for him. Had she only gone to the football game long enough to win her place back on the Vixens?

It's certainly unlike Betty not to be where Archie Andrews is. But Jughead recognizes that they're finally getting along and wisely decides not to rock the boat by asking. Instead, he simply decides to answer her question.

"Well I could do that." he says, perhaps a little flirtatiously. "But then Archie might finally figure out that of my two best friends, you're my favorite."

Betty's grin lights up her face yet again and Jughead thinks he will never get tired of seeing her so happy.

"Maybe I'll just have to hide underneath the bleachers where Arch won't see." he adds playfully. 

Yet as fast as Betty's smile reaches her eyes, it disappears and is replaced by a serious, sobering look. She bites her lip nervously before leaning forward slowly in her chair until she's secured full eye contact with him.

"So l have something I want to say to you." she starts, her palms suddenly flat on the surface of the table as she peers across at him. "I wasn't going to tell you this. But I realized earlier that now I'm back on the Vixens, if you're horrified by what I'm about to say then I can just go and sit with the girls at lunch for the rest of the school year. Okay?"

Jughead frowns. He can't comprehend what she could possibly have done to make her think that he may shun her. He knows with certainty that even if Betty is about to confess to murder, he'll just rearrange his weekly schedule to visit her in prison. But he also highly doubts she's found the time to pop a cap in someone's ass in between study sessions at the library and volunteering at the Riverdale animal shelter.

"Betty nothing you could say will ever horrify me enough that I won't want to eat lunch with you." he replies with absolute conviction. "I promise."

Betty seems to take in his words with visible relief, before opening her mouth and sucking in a lungful of air to steel her nerves.

"Okay, so." she begins, before pausing to take another deep breath. "I've been sitting here for the past hour thinking about the best way to explain this, and I've finally come up with a fantastic analogy. You know that Vivien Leigh movie - Gone with the Wind?"

The film buff in Jughead can't stay quiet and he quickly interjects. "I have no idea why you prefaced that question with 'you know that Vivien Leigh movie' because that film is a Hollywood cult icon and needs no precursor."

Betty's nostrils flare in annoyance at the interruption, and Jughead raises his hands in silent surrender.

"Anyway," she continues, shooting him a brief but playful scowl. "Scarlett O'Hara is convinced her whole life that she's in love with Ashley Wilkes, right? He's a close neighbor and they share the same values so she believes that they belong together. She puts all her time and energy into chasing after Ashley. Sound familiar?"

Jughead smirks and nods, although his stomach is beginning to churn with uneasiness. In the scenario she's weaving, dapper Ashley Wilkes is clearly strapping young Archie Andrews. But that's where Jughead's understanding of Betty's analogy ends.

Is she trying to tell Jughead that she's going to right Scarlett's errors by marrying Archie? Or is this some really obscure way of informing him that civil war has broken out and all the eligible men in Riverdale are shipping off to the frontline?

"Well I've realized that my life is a lot like Scarlett O'Hara's in more ways than one." Betty continues, her eyes wide as saucers as she watches Jughead carefully for a reaction. "Because it's only in the film's closing scenes that Scarlett finally perceives she's not in love with Ashley at all, and in actual fact she's been in love with Rhett Butler for basically the entire movie."

Jughead swears at that exact moment his heart physically stops beating. Like, he may actually have passed away. Dead. Deceased.

Forget about Archie, he may need to bury _himself_ in the back garden.

Jughead considers himself a smart boy and the analogy Betty is using is pretty freakin' obvious. Yet he can't allow himself to even hope. There's no way. There's just no way.

"But Scarlett was a fool because by the time she figured out she was in love with Rhett, it was too late." Betty sighs deeply. "Rhett was already out the door and frankly my dear he didn't give a damn."

Jughead feels like all the blood is rushing from his head. He is suddenly dizzy and he may actually faint. Is this real life?

"Betty..." he manages to gasp out, before his bottom jaw falls slack and he's just struck dumb.

If Betty is Scarlett O'Hara and Archie is Ashley Wilkes then who exactly is Riverdale's version of Rhett Butler?

Is Rhett Butler...him? Is _he_ Rhett Butler?

Is Betty trying to tell him that her feelings for Archie are false? That she actually loves him instead?

But Jughead isn't leaving Betty the same way Rhett left Scarlett. He isn't going anywhere.

Except, of course, unless he factors in that Betty has drunk of the Archie Andrews Kool Aid and stupidly believes that he is in love with Polly.

Oh my God it makes sense, Jughead realizes. The scenario fits. 

Suddenly he is struggling to breathe. He knows he needs to stay calm. He knows there's still an off chance that Rhett Butler in this analogy is some absolute fart waffle like Reggie Mantle. But he can feel the desire and anticipation bubbling in his chest.

Before either of them can utter another word, a heavy body is dropping down onto the seat next to Betty and curling itself into her in a friendly hug. Both Jughead and Betty gasp and half jump out of their skin at the interruption to their intense conversation.

"Congratulations Betty!" Archie whoops. "I saw you nail your audition for the Vixens while we were warming up before the game. So awesome! How come you didn't stick around to watch the mighty Dogs take down the Baxter High Ravens? State Championships here we come!"

"I had some things to do." she replies lamely, but Archie has thankfully completely missed the acute tension thickly entrenched in the booth.

He reaches over to pluck a menu from its resting place beside the salt shaker, accidentally-on-purpose brushing against Betty's arm as he does so. Betty immediately looks completely repulsed by his action and physically shifts herself further into the booth to avoid further happenstance contact. It's an action in complete contrast to last Friday's Family Dinner, when Betty was practically preening over Archie and his not quite lackadaisical touches.

As per typical, Archie is positively blind to anything controversial happening around him, as he simply glances over the contents of the laminated page that he's clutching. He is sweetly yet stupidly oblivious to the shell-shocked glances Betty and Jughead are tossing in each others' direction.

"I'm so glad you guys are talking again." he announces, eyes still cast upon the burger list.

Archie is one of those inane people who carefully considers the menu every single time, then religiously orders the exact same meal. Jughead finds the practice maddening, but for once in his life he has much bigger issues to worry about.

"I was going to just lock you both in a room until you ironed out your differences." Archie continues, laughing a little at his own unfunny joke. "If I order onion rings does someone want to go halves with me?"

Neither Betty nor Jughead say a word, and this unusual silence is what finally causes Archie to put down the menu and look up at them. He stares long and hard first at Jughead, then glances down at the petite blonde seated beside him.

"Uh..." he says, eyebrows knitted in confusion. "Everything okay, guys?"

"Super-duper!" Betty zealously proclaims at the exact same moment Jughead enthusiastically declares "You betcha!"

Betty groans at their ridiculous reactions and shamefully places her head in her hands.

Archie continues to stare blankly at them both, and for one painful moment Jughead thinks he'll actually need to dig deep for a lie to cover up the truth of the situation. But then Archie gives him an inadvertent 'in', so to speak.

"Well what have you guys been talking about while you waited for me to arrive?" Archie asks, his face still displaying his blatant scepticism.

Jughead realizes this is his opportunity to indirectly ask Betty if his take on her little film analogy is correct. If she rebuffs him, he can simply feign indifferent innocence and they can go back to being friends with no harm done.

"We were just discussing Gone with the Wind." Jughead announces, eyes peeled carefully on Betty as she lifts her head to gasp at him.

"You mean that old Vivien Leigh movie?" Archie asks, clearly unimpressed.

Betty smirks over at Jughead and raises her eyebrows as if to say _I told you so_ but Jughead just smirks back before dropping his cleverly planned bombshell.

"Yes that's the one." he nods. "I was just telling Betty here how Rhett Butler isn't actually leaving Scarlett O'Hara at the end of that movie."

This is enough to immediately wipe the smug grin off Betty's face. In fact, she looks instantly stupefied.

"Sure he is." Archie replies, unknowingly rising to take Jughead's bait. "He does that whole 'woman, I don't give a hot damn' thing and disappears out the front door. Remember?"

"He's faking it." Jughead argues, his eyes never once leaving Betty's face. "Even as he walks out of their house he knows he'll be back. He loves Scarlett. He's loved her the entire movie. He's not going anywhere without her, trust me."

Archie takes this assessment of the technicolor movie rather insouciantly and simply shrugs.

"Whatever you say, man." he answers, before returning his attention to the Pops menu.

Betty, on the other hand, has flushed bright pink and her breathing has turned hastened and sharp. She has clearly interpreted the hidden meaning of Jughead's words correctly. And she certainly isn't making a run for it, so Jughead feels curiously emboldened. 

"I'm not going to lie, Jug." Archie pipes up again, finally dropping the menu. "I was hoping you were going to say that you and Betty had been talking about Polly." 

At this, Betty actually makes a weird little squeaking sound in the back of her throat.

Jughead can feel his confidence building as he watches her demeanor crumble in front of him. Maybe, just maybe, he's about to win the girl of his dreams. 

"I don't have a thing for Polly." Jughead says coolly, finally turning to look at his oldest and most unaware friend.

"Oh please, Jug." Archie scoffs with a disbelieving laugh. "I saw you gaping in the Coopers window with your lovesick eyes. Do you deny it?"

Jughead licks his lips slowly and then flicks his eyes back across to Betty. His eyebrows quirk ever so slightly.

"No." he finally says.

He hopes and prays that Betty can read between these very blurry lines. That she can receive the message he's trying to gently nudge in her direction.

Because he _was_ staring in that window. He just wasn't staring at _Polly_.

Archie, for his part, seems mighty pleased by Jughead's apparent admission. But before he can open his mouth to begin crowing about it, Betty abruptly slams both her hands down on the formica tabletop as if she's just had an epiphany.

"Archie get out!" she abruptly demands. "I need to talk to Jughead for a minute."

Jughead gasps and the corners of his mouth turn upward in another trademark smirk. Archie, on the other hand, is completely lost. He turns to gawk at Betty in utter surprise.

"Huh?" he frowns.

"Now. Go!" Betty shrieks insistently. "Get out of the booth."

Archie just sits there, churning her words over in his jock brain, mouth slightly agape. The delay in his reaction is far too long for Betty, because she pushes herself to her feet and makes to get out of the booth herself.

Unfortunately Archie's usual seat is right beside her so there's 175 lbs of roadblock between her and finishing off her extremely important conversation with Jughead.

Betty starts to panic. Never in her wildest imagination did she ever expect her admission of love (albeit an extremely _indirect_ admission thanks to her master stroke film analogy) to take a turn in this direction. She doesn't even know what outcome she _was_ expecting.

But not this. Never even close to this.

All she can think is that perhaps Archie was mistaken last Friday when he told her that Jughead was crushing on Polly. All she can hope is that Jughead's inferences at the dinner table are true. 

Could he love _her_? Could they actually be in love with each other?

She needs to know, and she needs to know immediately.

If Archie isn't going to move, then Betty realizes that she only has one choice. Not knowing what else to do, she throws herself in her best friend's direction and starts physically climbing over him to get out of the booth.

"Betty what the hell?" Archie gasps, throwing his arms up in shock.

"I need to speak with Jughead." she mutters apologetically by way of explanation, finally reaching the other side of the seat and rushing out of the diner in a flurry of desperation.

Betty doesn't really know why she has come all the way outside.  She doesn't even know if Jughead is following her. She is aware that she isn't quite acting rationally. 

Even with all the adrenaline pumping through her system, the cold night air immediately assaults her body and she is harshly reminded of the fact she is wearing her Vixens uniform. The white turtleneck under the skimpy blue and yellow top offers mild protection for her upper body, but her legs are bare beneath her tiny cotton skirt.

"Shit shit shit" she chants, hopping from one leg to the other to ward off the late October chill.

Seconds later the front door to Pops is thrown open, sending the little bell in the top corner into a jingley overdrive. Jughead comes flying out of the building, his eyes lock onto Betty immediately and his long legs are striding in her direction.

Before he even fully reaches her, he is already sliding the sleeves of his prized Serpents jacket down his arms so that he can pass it over to her. She doesn't miss the look of genuine concern etched on the features of his beautiful face as he drapes the worn leather across her shoulders and assists her to properly tug the jacket on for the second time that day.

It takes everything inside her not to just blurt out that she loves him in that very moment.

"Betts, it's like forty five degrees out here." Jughead grumbles. "Maybe we should go back inside. I don't want you getting sick."

Betty makes absolutely no move to head back into Pops. She knows Jughead has always worried about her. But tonight she decides that perhaps it means something more. Tonight is different. At least she hopes it's different.

"Jughead, I..." she stops abruptly when something catches her eye.

Archie is openly gaping at them through the window of the diner, craning his head to try and get a better view. Freakin' typical...

Betty scowls and reaches out to grab Jughead by the hand, then shuffles further around the side of the building where they are safely out of sight of the patrons. She makes no move to drop his hand and neither does he.

Despite the biting weather, Betty's skin is instantly warm where Jughead's skin touches her. It's like electricity is passing from his hand into hers and her body is frying from the inside out. But, like, in a good way.

She never wants to stop feeling this. She never wants things to go back to the way they were. But she's terrified that it all will.

"Do you have a crush on Polly?" she suddenly blurts out.

It's not at all what she intended to say, and she immediately feels her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

_Way to ruin the mood, Cooper._

But Jughead doesn't seem perturbed. In fact, he seems happy.

"No." he answers, his eyes twinkling. "Do you have a crush on Archie?"

Betty let's out a glorious laugh and shakes her head so hard she feels the ends of her ponytail whip against her neck. "No. I don't."

Betty can't even remember the last time she saw Jughead offer anyone a megawatt smile like the one suddenly plastered on his face. Perhaps when they were in the seventh grade and he won the middle school story writing contest.

It takes her a few seconds to realize Jughead's smile is completely reflected on her own face. She is practically drowning in giddy excitement. This is really happening. This is really, really happening.

"Betty I hope I've been reading the signals right tonight. I hope it's okay to tell you that I've been totally gone for you for so long it's not even funny." Jughead admits, tightening his grip on her fingers.

"God, Juggie. I wish you'd told me." Betty gasps, taking an unconscious step toward him. "I'm so sorry I acted so stupidly - both this week and, you know, the last several years. I was so blind to the truth that's been right in front of me."

Jughead slides forward then, and brings his free hand up to gently cup her face.

"And what truth is that?" he asks, his voice dropping to a whisper.

Betty can feel his hot breath on her face and his fingers curling around her jaw. Her mind almost completely goes blank as he drops his hold on her hand and moves to sink his grip onto her waist.

She realizes she is now physically anchored to him, and she is thoroughly grateful for it. She hopes he is prepared to catch her if her knees suddenly give out - which could genuinely happen any moment.

"That I've been in love with you for years." she manages to announce, right before his lips come crashing down on top of her own.

Euphoria.

Betty is flying. If this is a dream then she truly hopes she never wakes up.

_Jughead Jones_ is kissing her.

They move in perfect unison, both utterly in sync with one another. His tongue slips inside her mouth and she feels heady with delight as she allows her body to completely sink into him. 

When he breaks the kiss and steps back a little, he is grinning like the Cheshire Cat. Now he definitely looks much happier than the time he beat her in that stupid story writing contest. Betty can hardly believe he looks so happy because of _her_ this time.

There's maybe a foot between them, but the sudden loss of his warmth reminds Betty's body of the fact it's nearing winter and she's scantily dressed. Despite her attempt to downplay her coldness, her arms start to tremble of their own volition.

Jughead notices (because of course he does - the boy is practically a saint. A _really_ good looking saint.) and swiftly backs her up against the side of the building then positions his body flush against hers to both shield her from the wind and offer her some body heat.

"We really need to get you back inside." he suggests again, his hands tracking rapidly up and down her biceps to stimulate warmth.

"I'm actually pretty happy right where I am for the moment." Betty replies, tilting her head back so she can peer up at him. "Though I will say I'm glad the football season is almost over. It's already way too chilly to be cheering outside."

Jughead kisses the tip of her cold nose then suddenly laughs as her words wash over him. "I can't believe I'm dating a cheerleader."

Betty swats him playfully in the chest but raises her eyebrows in expectation. "Dating? I don't remember you asking me out, Jug."

She clearly means it as a joke. She's just confessed her love for him, for crying out loud, and that has to mean something pretty special. But Jughead immediately sobers and drops his hands to his side.

"Betty Cooper, will you go out with me?" he asks, a radiant glint in his eye. "On a date?"

Betty laughs and reaches for him again. "Definitely. Any time. Just name the day."

Jughead kisses her again, his mouth lingering directly over hers, before grinning and reaching down to grab her hand.

"Let's go right now." he announces excitedly.

"Go? Where?" Betty asks, confused.

"On our date!" is his instantaneous reply.

He's looking at her like she's the sun and suddenly Betty doesn't feel so cold anymore. Despite her inner radiance, she halts his footsteps by pulling on his hand as he starts back around to the Pops parking lot.

"Juggie we can't leave right now." she giggles. "Archie is inside waiting for us, remember?"

"Let him wait." Jughead shrugs nonchalantly. "He's been monopolizing your time since grade school. It's my turn to hog you for a bit."

Betty finds herself particularly unable to argue with Jughead's sentiment, but guilt gnaws away at her.

"Remember if it wasn't for Archie's misplaced meddling we would never have discovered how we feel about each other." she points out, drawing Jughead back to her side.

He immediately brings a hand up to her face and then leans down to kiss her hard on the mouth, before pulling away with an elated chuckle.

"So we'll make him best man at our wedding." he counter-argues smartly.

Betty understands he is messing around, yet the mere idea of Jughead cracking jokes about their future hypothetical wedding day is enough to constrict her breathing.

"That poor boy is so deluded you'll be walking down the aisle in your white dress and he'll still be trying to set me up with Polly." he adds with a wink.

"He means well." Betty rolls her eyes, failing to suppress her mirth as she stands on tiptoe to place a kiss on Jughead's cheek.

"And we love him for it." Jughead agrees. "But right now, woman I don't give a hot damn."

Betty giggles at Jughead's fairly accurate Archie impersonation. "By the way, my Gone with the Wind analogy was pure genius. Am I right or am I right?"

"It was something, that's for sure." Jughead replies wryly. "So are we going or not?"

Betty ducks her head around the side of the diner, just far enough that she can catch a glimpse of Archie through the frosted window. He's still sitting at their usual table, but he's been joined by several Bulldogs players. He seems happy enough, and Betty realizes that he probably won't miss them too much.

"Okay." she decides suddenly. "Let's do it!"

Before she can change her mind, Jughead entwines their fingers and then they're running as swiftly as they can to Jughead's bike. Nobody inside Pops has noticed them yet, so he makes quick work of fastening the strap of his old black helmet underneath her chin and then assisting her to climb onto the seat behind him.

"Where are we going to go?" she wonders, excitement bubbling inside her chest.

"First, we're going back to your place so you can change into some more weather appropriate clothing." Jughead smirks, kickstarting the motor and applying pressure to the throttle.

"And then where?" Betty asks, her arms curling around his waist as she snuggles into his back.

"Anywhere. Everywhere." Jughead answers earnestly. "It doesn't matter as long as we're together."

Moments later, the bike peels out of the parking lot and disappears into the velvet darkness.

And Betty realizes that Jughead is right.

They have each other now, and that's all that matters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This little fic is officially done and dusted. Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed. 
> 
> This has been a fun fluffy little distraction (read: procrastination) from The Gathering of Moss but I'm delving back into that headspace now and hopefully I'll drop a new chapter very shortly.


End file.
